User Reviews

Our Users Say

Critic Reviews

While a true sense of 'evolution' may be in short supply, Pro Evolution 2010 remains nothing short of a convincing return to form for Konami thanks to streamlined presentation, unpredictable gameplay, intuitive tactical planning, consistently variable challenge and a much-improved online service. Hold sway if you're considering a footballing defection based on recent series shortfalls, Pro Evolution 2010 is, kick for kick, Konami's best effort in years.

I don’t mean to make Pro Evolution Soccer 2010 sound like a bad soccer game, because it isn’t. It’s just a disappointing one. Just about everything except the visuals feels a bit stale, even the new Become A Legend mode which feels like it’s from an ’08 edition. The gameplay is solid; it just isn’t able to keep pace with FIFA 10 in most regards. It’s tough to recommend this to anyone when EA Sports’ superior product is on the market, but if you’re a diehard PES lover, you’ll feel right at home with this one.

It really is a shame that all the improvements are ruined by the online aspect. This may not be a deal-breaker for many people, and the offline multiplayer is as good as previous versions. For Gamestyle, however, the superb graphics and excellent match physics are undone by the online mode, and as such, we can only recommend PES 2010 to true fans of the series. But then, you have already bought the game, and probably won't be reading this review.

So, Pro Evo 2010 doesn't have the licenses of FIFA, doesn't have the budget of FIFA, and it doesn't have the smooth online experience of FIFA. It even has the odd translation issue here and there, such as using "stopped time" instead of the correct "stoppage time." But in spite of all the technical gaffes, it's clear that producer Shingo "Seabass" Takatsuka and his team at Konami still have a handle on the heart and soul of the beautiful game. Yes, FIFA is the superior offering this year -- but it's a lot closer than you might initially think.

Pro Evolution Soccer still plays a good game of football, and if you loved previous games in the series, you'll no doubt enjoy playing this year's model. However, Pro Evo can no longer claim to be the best football game in any given area, and other than the incremental improvements made over the past few years, it's in desperate need of a complete overhaul. Fixing problems, such as online play, is certainly welcome, but for a game that hasn't substantially changed across five years and two console generations, there's a definite sense of diminishing returns from this increasingly stale series.